Heart Shaped Box
by Paisley May
Summary: Our stories are bound together by the simple threads of time unwasted. -Drabbles-
1. Sunset Rising: SasuSaku

_^Sunset _**Rising^**

_So long as we are living ____under the same sky__  
silently, strongly, for that day I wait._

* * *

It wasn't really a tradition, but it was slowly becoming a habit. Sasuke could have easily stopped at any time. Right?

He wasn't sure why he always watched the sunrise at the same time each morning. He was equally unsure of why he always watched from the stone bench near the village exit. The very same bench where he had carelessly left a heartbroken girl to lay unconscious in her own tears.

It was the same place he had walked through upon returning to Konohagakure, an ANBU on each side because even in his injured condition and newfound loyalty they didn't trust him. Nobody did- there were times when Naruto's laughter became pained and awkward, because they were both thinking the exact same thing.

This was not the same. It probably never would be.

There were times during his required checkups when he would fidget and she would flinch away from him, eyes squeezed shut. It was not so much that he would hurt her, she probably thought, but that he would change his mind and leave her alone at any given moment.

She was not afraid of him.

Sometimes, when she stayed late doing paperwork, she would take it to his hospital room and finish it in the glow of the moonlight. The light shone in a way that paled her hair and skin. She looked like a spirit- an angel, even, watching over him though he never once slept in her presence.

But he wasn't in the hospital anymore. He lived alone in the main house of the Uchiha compound, the only one left undamaged after Madara's vicious attack on the village. The attack that led him back to fight the ghosts of his past, and the ones who'd never truly left him in the first place. It was somewhere in that battle where he had changed sides in order to protect those precious people who he'd once threatened to kill without regrets. For his help in winning, he narrowly escaped the death penalty, thanks to many testimonies by the Rookie Nine.

Sakura lost her house. Her parents moved in with the family of Ino Yamanaka- apparently they were friends. But for whatever reason, Sakura chose to crash at Naruto's apartment instead. He'd never worked up the nerve to ask her why. In all honesty, he'd rather not know.

It had been almost a year now; her parents had bought a new house and Sakura had moved back with them. It was mere blocks from his own home, not that he minded too much.

His probation was over, and the ANBU were finally allowed to leave him alone. He was free. Sometimes when he couldn't sleep, which was often, he would go on walks. There was no specific place he wished to go, but he always seemed to end up at her house.

A few times he found her there awake. She would be sitting up on her balcony, looking absent-mindedly up at the stars. Twice, he sat up on the railing next to her. Neither one of them said a word. It was not an awkward sort of silence. When seconds rolled into minutes and minutes rolled into hours, there was a soothing kind of peace to it.

To them, even.

Sometimes, she would gently rest her head on his shoulder for a while. Her hair would tickle his neck, but he didn't care.

Once, he stayed there until the sun rose. And she cried. For what reason, he did not know. But always he had a feeling that it had been his fault somehow. He never walked by her house anymore.

But he did watch the sunrise. Through the rain and snow and cold, there was no effort to exert- he rarely slept anyway.

The dark blue night would pass over him when the glittering sun crawled slowly over the horizon. It was pink. He never stayed until the sun had risen completely. The cheery blue of the late morning did not please him.

Today they were supposed to meet at Ichiraku's for a strange and unhealthy breakfast of ramen. As usual, Sakura would bring some more suitable foods for him as an incentive to come anyway.

Today, he knew, would be a different kind of encounter. Naruto was on a mission this morning with Sai and Kakashi, and wouldn't be back until tomorrow.

Today the dark blue and pink swirled above his head in a unique déjà vu. Every morning it was the same, yet somehow different in his eyes.

Today he wondered if she was awake as well, standing on her balcony. He wondered if she was alone or crying or smiling out into the world.

Today was a new day, and even though Sakura was halfway across the village at the moment, he didn't feel lonely.

After all, they were watching the same sky.

_End_

* * *

**Super Special Note From Moi-**In case nobody could tell, this is the first chapter of an anthology. It's mostly just drabbles I wrote in class on the backs of worksheets and stuff. So far I've found ten, for the couples SasuSaku, NaruHina, SuiKa, KakaRin and whatever they call Pein and Konan (PeiKo? Enlighten me, please. xD) It's something I'll update every once in a while when I feel like it, I guess. There might be less of a wait if I get some yummy delicious reviews from you amazingly amazing people. ;D

And the Document Manager is getting me super OCD! I always like making the stuff at the top and the word 'end' centered, but for some reason it wouldn't save like that. I kept trying to get it to save centered literally fifty times, but it wouldn't work! Does that happen to anyone else? The centering thing, not the extreme OCD. -__-

_**R.A.W.R-**__** R**__ead__** A**__nd__** W**__rite __**R**__eviews!_

**Love meeeee! (And write some reviews while you're at it! =DD)  
**_~Paisley May~_


	2. Ad Infinitum: NaruHina

Ad_ Infinitum_

_Because sometimes all you can do  
is hope._

_

* * *

_

Hinata loved the winter. It was a time of togetherness, when she could sit by the grand fireplace of the Hyuuga mansion with Hanabi and drink hot tea. She could bake fresh cinnamon rolls- her favorite food.

She could wake up in the morning to find elegant white snowflakes dancing outside of her bedroom window.

There were a multitude of holidays to celebrate, and lots of festivals to attend. She did not necessarily enjoy being around so many people, but Shino and Kiba would typically meet her there. Kiba would snatch her away from her family and drag her and Shino to go do something else. It was usually crazy, but fun nonetheless.

And of course, there was Valentines Day. It was the time of year where Hinata would spend the previous night confecting the perfect gift for Naruto. She would borrow her mother's cooking utensils and make a large chocolate heart for her long-time crush. Every year since she was nine, she would place it gingerly inside of a big red box with a tiny pink ribbon around it, and walk to his apartment early in the morning.

Every Valentines Day, she stood at his apartment door, willing herself to gain enough courage to ring the doorbell and give it to him.

Every Valentines Day, she would leave it at his door and hope he didn't step on it.

She never knew what the fate of her chocolates became each year, but she liked to think he had eaten and enjoyed most of them.

The year after they graduated from the Academy, Kakashi Hatake had seen her trudging through the snow with a large red box. They had never spoken before, but it seemed all but Naruto knew of her infatuation. He raised one eyebrow, but continued walking without a word spoken between them.

The next time she saw Naruto, he was leaving the village with an older man named Jiraiya. He had a few small bandages on his face from his fight with Sasuke Uchiha. Apparently he had left, and betrayed the village. It was incomprehensible to her at the time; her father no different. He often grumbled things under his breath about how 'that damn Uchiha' had almost cost the clan an important member.

It was those days when she truly felt sorry for Naruto. He had lost someone who had obviously been very close to him. Like a brother.

She felt spoiled. Neji lost his father, and sometimes it seemed like Naruto had lost everything. The most traumatic loss she'd experienced was losing a doll in her younger years.

She missed him. Even though she had nobody in particular to give them to, she still made a chocolate heart for each year he was gone. They ended up being stolen by another family member; they all enjoyed her cooking.

"Onee-chan, why do you make those?" Hanabi was watching her from the kitchen door.

"I don't know."

But she smiled anyway.

_End_

* * *

**Super Special Note From Moi- **It's really funny how long it took me to type this. I'm so lazy, I would just take out the written version (which i've had stuffed in a notebook FOREVER.) and open the Word document, type a sentence and go back to sleeping. I think I'll type up this really random SuiKa thing I wrote as the next chapter. What do you think? After that, I think I'll go back to some more SasuSaku lurrve. =DDD

Oh, and I just realized I forgot my disclaimer! But come on, people- If I was Masashi Kishimoto (who DOES, in fact, own Naruto.) don't you think I would have rubbed it in or something by now? For those who don't know the answer- **No, I do not own Naruto.**

_**R.A.W.R- R**ead** A**nd **W**rite** R**eviews!_

**GAGA OOH LA LA,  
**_~Paisley May~_


	3. Baby The Stars Shine Bright!: SuiKa

**Baby** The _Stars_ _Shine_ **BRIGHT!**

_You said it was a new day  
When Midnight came around  
But it always seems to look the same to me._

_

* * *

_

He didn't deserve this. There was no punishment too harsh and no insult too wounding for the disgusting, mindless bastard walking beside her. He should be rotting in jail like the obnoxious, heartless, cold-blooded killer he was.

But no, Suigetsu simply had to be her self proclaimed 'date'. And for what? The Konoha New Years Festival; the one she didn't even want to attend in the first place because she absolutely despised Konoha. And New Years. And Taka.

Without Sasuke-kun, Konoha was just several hundred square miles of worthless, empty space. Sure, sure. He was 'on probation' at his home. The way she saw it, it was just an official decree that he wanted his other team and his other life and his other home. He didn't need them and he didn't fucking want them, but yet there they were in his dumpy little village. It was pathetic, really. They were wasting their lives away by following him like lost puppies.

Not that she minded his company, the few days when he actually _was_ their company. Everyone else, on the other hand, was a nuisance. Especially you-know-who.

She decided that the best way to get back at him would be to look so utterly amazing that he would pass out. It shouldn't be too hard, she thought to herself, so she forced him to go kimono shopping in antictpation of the event. His incessant whining and groaning only made the experience more enjoyable. She chuckled to herself as she wandered through the colorful aisles of the clothing store.

He sat, bored, grumbling things about how he never asked for this. She snatched up half a dozen kimonos and reminded the insipid little brat that he had.

The first kimono was forest green with tiny white flowers on the edges, and she turned and spinned and blew kisses at herself in the mirror. He shrugged.

The third one was navy blue with a light blue sash and border. He hardly stole a glance when she waltzed out of the dressing room to show him.

The fifth one was certainly her favorite by far. When she strutted out in a white kimono with bright red flowers, she was postive his nose would start to bleed. The red of the flowers accentuated her scarlet hair and the top was more low-cut than her regular ninja attire. He simply yawned and shifted on the wooden bench.

She fumed. But why should she care about what he thought? Surely there were more important and attractive people she could abide her time impressing with her beauty. Something inside of her had taken hold, driving her to keep trying.

But she couldn't get him to even _look_ interested in her.

By the time she'd changed back into her regular clothing, he was waiting by the checkout line and slouched over the counter. He looked at her expectantly, but she still didn't know which one she wanted. So she asked.

And he asked.

"Che, why should it matter? I-"

She made extra sure that her fist connected with at least one of his eyes, so he couldn't see the angry tears that brimmed her eyes. She stormed out of the store, not really caring who stared. When she finally arrived at the house where Taka now lived, she stormed up the stairs and flopped onto her bed, disappointed. Couldn't just one guy appreciate her? Minutes passed, then hours. She didn't care.

She looked up from her bed, miserable and red-eyed, to see Suigetsu standing there with six kimonos and a yellow reciept. He shrugged sheepishly and tossed them onto a stool in the corner. She probably wasn't supposed to hear what he said under his breath.

"I liked them all."

_End_

* * *

**Super Special Note From Moi-** Merry Early Christmas! I like this story. It didn't turn out how I meant for it to, but I like this one better. The next one will be SasuSaku, I promise! I already know which one I want to publish, and it's quite interesting. It's both KakaRin and SasuSaku, from Kakashi's POV, simply because i've always wanted to write something from Kakashi's perspective. There's some other stuff I could do too, but I'm not sure. I'm so indecisive.... Well, what do you think?

_**R.A.W.R-** **R**ead **A**nd **W**rite **R**eviews!_

**Merry Christmas (And a happy New Year!)  
**_~Paisley May~_


	4. Parallelogram: SasuSaku & KakaRin

___________  
/_Parallelogram_ /

_I look across from myself to find  
The only one for me._

_

* * *

_

Sometimes, Kakashi wonders if history ever actually repeats itself. It is a common phrase that everyone knows, and everyone says is true. But as any hardened shinobi knows, people lie. To others as well as themselves, typically without a hint of remorse. Human nature rarely changed. So, really, why should the humans?

It was an unacceptable theory with unacceptable amounts of proof. History cannot return from the past, it is all but impossible. But as he watches his young genin students, there is doubt.

When Sakura fawns over her brooding crush, there is doubt.

When Naruto sees this and grumbles in the background, there is doubt.

When Sasuke scoffs and isolates himself, there is doubt.

Perhaps they are telling the truth, these people he has spoken to. Perhaps history really can repeat itself.

He feels pity for those who will have to suffer the continuous pain of loss, as he did. He sees the young shinobi who will have to grow up too fast. He remembers Rin, who was nothing but kind and sweet and selfless- she was a medic, after all.

He remembers how, when she needed him the most, he wanted to forget about her for the sake of the mission.

But now she is gone and dead and buried somewhere, decomposed and unrecognizable. And he could not forget her if he tried.

On a bright sunny day, Sakura is lying under a willow tree, letting the occasional ray of sunlight tickle her smiling face. He could feel her chakra, perfectly stable and controlled without an ounce of effort. Surely, she would be a fine medic someday.

He sees Sasuke glance over not once, but twice, with his softened gaze always settling on her wispy, peaceful form. Kakashi smiled.

Perhaps the new generation will write its own ending.

_End_

_

* * *

_

**Super Special Note From Moi-** Wow, I'm working like, nonstop lately. It's mostly because it's snowing here, and I'm stuck in the house because the weather people keep saying it'll be up to two feet of snow. I hope I get off school~! =DDD

Haha, and for those who are practically failing Geometry like I am, a Parallelogram is a shape with two pairs of parallel sides (Like the one I tried to make around the title, but failed miserably). See? The title isn't as abstract as it sounds! xD

_**R.A.W.R-** **R**ead** A**nd** W**rite **R**eviews! Please? I haven't gotten one since the first chapter came out, and it makes me saddish. :(_

**I'll be home for Christmas! :3  
**_~Paisley May~_


	5. abysmal: SasuSaku?

**abysmal**

_When you blink, there is nothing._

_

* * *

_

You just don't get it, do you? Go on and ask yourself.

Do you see how you hurt those who surround you, willingly or otherwise? Wait, scratch that. You hold no one against their will. Solidarity suits you better, right?

Don't you care the slightest bit about all the countless people you've stepped on, deserving or not? All those people who you couldn't have managed still being alive without? What about all those people whom you hold needless spite towards, and those who you've taken your blind anger out on? Those people who you've left in your wake?

You see that one there, with the black flames spouting from his back? He had a life. And a family and friends who are crushed and broken and grieving and it's **_all your fault!_**

Remember those people who worked tirelessly in hopes that you would show them the faintest hint of gratitude or approval? Those people who stood in your shadow, holding up your ego? Remember all your little shadow people?

Remember when you used to be one?

Crawling around in the back of their subconscious's, outshone and outdone by someone you only _thought_ you hated. You would never admit it_ (the words would have to be pulled from your mouth or scraped from your tongue or stolen from your widespread collection of unspoken thoughts worth gold)_ but when you see those other shadow people, you think of you and only you. Because you are all that really matters anymore, you _think, think, think!_

But where has your twisted way of thinking ever gotten you in life? You wouldn't know, you shouldn't know. Half of what you think you've known is bullshit, if not all of it. What else was a lie?

You think so damn negatively, so therefore it must be everything. And to deepen the wound, you must go find these other lies and verify the rest of your sleeping fears. Pain is your life, your soul, your drive, your purpose. It fuels your fiery spirit with the blackened piece of coal in your chest _(remember when it used to have a heartbeat?)_

But you don't realize that. You think you're running from your pain. That's the only reason your world still revolves and your blood still pulses and your little piece of coal keeps beating- in a literal sense, anyway. You think you're running away.

But you're running towards it. You run to your pain because it's all you've got left to think about anymore. Everything you see is just a different kind of pain.

Sometimes when your teammate _(that's what you're supposed to call them, don't forget that)_ watches birds, you'd rather think he's watching students. Until that one bird, the blackbird, the dark bird, the raven flies away and you don't want to think about it anymore.

Sometimes when your teammate smiles that shark-like, bloodthirsty grin, you like to think his dimples look like little whiskers. But then you look just one second too long and he catches you. He doesn't smile wider or challenge you to a spar or punch your arm or stick out his tongue like a child. He just looks away and so do you.

Sometimes when your teammate stands at just the right angle in the sunlight, you _(don't think won't think could never think) _**know **that her hair looks kind of sort of _pink _and it's not a compliment or an insult or even a conscious thought. It's merely an observation.

Because when you blink, nothing changes.

Your world is dark and blank and lonely no matter what you see- and it's a good thing, too, because you're slowly, slowly going blind.

Because even when you blink, your disgusting world of anguish does not leave you because you cannot leave it. You've learned not how to live with it, but instead how not to live without it, and you cling to that one piece a familiarity that will not tarnish your so-called pride in the overly judgmental eyes of the outside world.

And when you blink, _they_ creep up on you from the back of your abysmal state of mind and snatch you up in a kind of nostalgic, longing sort of feeling that you can't describe.

All because you can't stop thinking.

When the sunset turns pink, when the cherry blossoms bloom, when Kabuto's new test subject has those sad, green, begging, pleading eyes that scream _help me save me takemewithyou!_

_Take me with you!_

And you don't. You never did, you never do and you always, always will. It's all just one nasty, vicious circle.

And you don't stop thinking because you can't stop thinking because you have that itty-bitty piece of you that just wants to cut the bullshit and get your life back and live happily ever after.

But you don't deserve that happy ending, do you?

So you close your eyes and wait for someone to rip them open and let your entire being readjust to the light of day once more. You secretly wait for them even though you're almost sure they aren't waiting for you anymore. That's what you think?

You just don't get it, do you? Go on, ask yourself.

Just swear that you won't lie anymore.

_[promisepromisewish]_

_

* * *

_

I don't really care what you think about this, but I'm just sorry that this is so bitter. It's just that I have a friend who thinks like this, and between my unhealthy obsession with SasuSaku, and therfore Sasuke, and her, I can't stand this awful _woe-is-fucking-me_ attitude anymore. And when I'm pissed my sense and sanity and **grammatical skills** go flying out the window. Oh, and for the people who have this anthology on story alert, I don't know why those emails send twice, but I'm sorry. :/

So there. Deal with it.  
_Paisley~_


End file.
